CHAPTER SEVENTEEN #2
“A real-life cabin?” The little girl’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Yep, a real-life cabin, and it’s by a river.” He twisted to look back at her. “We’ll get some stuff from the big house, then stop at a market for some food to take with us. How does that sound?”
“That sounds awesome!” She lifted her bunny high overhead and shook it. “Can Bunny come, too?”
“Of course.” He put the car in gear and started toward the house, making sure Hawk and Boone were behind them.
Lucia lowered her visor and looked at her daughter in the small mirror to ensure she was distracted with her bunny.
“What happened?” she whispered to him.
“I promise, I’ll explain when we get to the house.” He lifted Lucia’s hand and kissed her knuckles.
A short time later, they made their way up the long driveway.
“I’m going to pull into the garage.” He reached up and pressed the remote clipped to the visor. “Stay in the car until the garage door is all the way down.”
They rolled into the large garage, and the overhead light clicked on. He waited until Boone and Hawk pulled into the driveway, then pressed the remote and stayed put until the door was all the way down before shutting off the car and unlocking the doors.
He slid his hand around to hold the back of her neck, tugged her toward him, and kissed her.
“Ewww, you’re kissing again.” Isabella slapped her hands over her eyes.
He broke their kiss and rested his forehead against Lucia’s.
“Go ahead and start pulling together enough stuff for a few days. Make sure to bring bathing suits, just in case.” He unlocked the doors. “I’ll get Isabella.”
He released her, and they both climbed out. She got to the door just as Hawk swung it open. She hurried past him, and Eddie opened Isabella’s door for her.
“Hop out, squirt,” he said.
She unclipped her seat belt, got a good grip on her bunny, and hopped out.
“Why don’t you go help Mommy?” He took her hand and led her into the house.
“Okay.” She smiled and skipped toward their bedroom.
“We didn’t see anyone following you,” Hawk said.
“When we leave here, I’d appreciate it if you guys would follow us to the edge of town, to where I turn onto the road leading out to the cabin.”
“Absolutely,” his teammate said. “Go do what you need to do.”
“Thanks.” Eddie rushed to his room, shut the door, and dropped to his knees next to the bed. He reached under and dragged a long, hard-sided gun case from underneath and set it on the bed. It was secured by two padlocks, so he turned the dials to unlock them and lifted the lid.
An AR-15 with an attached Modlite flashlight, red-dot site, and variable scope was nestled in dense, form-fitting rubber.
He lifted it out, pulled back the slide to check that the chamber was empty, and released it to snap back in place.
He verified there were three loaded magazines in the pockets, then shut the case and locked it.
He stepped over to the large walk-in closet, grabbed his duffle bag from the back, and unzipped it.
His primary sidearm was on his hip, so he checked his backup pistol and zipped it back into its case.
Six boxes of ammo, his hunting knife, black balaclava, and zip ties were all where he’d left them.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He tugged it free and was surprised to see Cole’s number.
“What’s up?” He held the phone between his shoulder and ear and tossed a bunch of clothes into the duffle bag and looped the strap over his head.
“We lost Munoz.” His tone held a hint of frustration.
Eddie stopped in his tracks. “What the hell happened?”
“The deputy following him was involved in an accident,” Cole said. “Some dipshit was on his phone, not paying attention, and slammed right into the back end of his car at full speed.”
“Shit.” Eddie speared his fingers through his hair. “Is the deputy okay?”
“He’s been transported to the hospital, but the airbags did their job, and he should be okay. Luna’s going to see if she can track Munoz’s movements via CCTV.”
“Okay, thanks for letting me know.” Eddie grabbed his tactical vest and helmet from the closet.
“Touch base when you get to the cabin,” Cole said.
“Will do.” He ended the call, stuffed his phone in his back pocket, and ran out to the garage. He set his gear in the back of the SUV and ran back in to grab his rifle case.
Lucia stepped from the hallway as he was walking past, and her gaze fell to the black case, then lifted to his face.
“Is that what I think it is?” she asked.
“If you’re thinking it’s a rifle, then yes.” Eddie and his teams considered them one of many tools of their trade.
She walked up to him and gave him a quick kiss. “Are you ready to tell me what happened?”
“Munoz crossed the border into Texas a little over an hour ago.” He hated everything about having to tell her that, but she had a right to know what was happening.
“Okay, then.” She rested her hand on the middle of his chest. “We’ll be ready to leave in five minutes.” She hurried past him, headed to the kitchen, and Boone helped her pack up some food.
In that moment of calm, Lucia showed an admirable kind of strength she’d never displayed all those years ago.
They were different people now, and it would take some time to truly get to know each other.
But Eddie was certain in his mind and heart that he loved her as much as any man could love a woman.
He ran into the office and loaded some of Luna’s high-tech electronics into their case, then set the case next to his rifle in the back of the SUV.
The cabin had power but no Wi-Fi, and the cell coverage could be a bit spotty at times.
It was one of the things he loved most about the place.
Fortunately, Dark Ops’ resident tech genius made sure they always had fully functional phones and portable satellite links to connect to the Internet.
The door from the house opened, and Boone stepped into the garage carrying a couple of bags of groceries, with Lucia and Isabella right behind him. Hawk was next, carrying Lucia’s large duffle bag and Lucia’s princess suitcase.
Eddie walked over and relieved him of the suitcase and duffle and loaded them in the back. The princess suitcase offered a stark contrast to the black rifle case.
“I found an insulated bag in the pantry and put some cold items in there.” Lucia pointed her thumb over her shoulder.
“I’ll go grab it.” Boone jogged inside.
“You guys hop in and buckle up.” Eddie opened both passenger doors, made sure they were both clipped in, and shut the doors.
Boone came out a minute later.
“Go ahead and get in the car, then open the garage door.” He handed the silver cooler bag to Eddie. “I’ll go out that way, since Hawk’s already in the other SUV.”
“Will do.” He hurried around to climb in behind the wheel, then looked from Lucia to Isabella. “Everyone ready?”
“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Lucia said.
“Bunny and I are ready, too,” Isabella said.
“All right, let’s go!” Eddie opened the garage door. It rattled upward and stopped.
“Yay!” The little girl raised a hand in the air, and her legs swung side to side. “We’re goin’ to a ca-bin. We’re goin’ to a ca-bin.” Her singsong voice was so much sweeter than hearing her cry.
Eddie backed out of the garage, made sure it was all the way down, then headed away from the big house on the hill, with his trusted teammates close behind, watching their backs.